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2002 Brazilian Grand Prix
31 March | officialname = XXXI Grande Prêmio do Brasil | circuit = Autódromo José Carlos Pace | location = Sao Paulo, Brazil | circuittype = Permanent racing facility | lapdistance = 4.309 | laps = 71 | distance = 305.939 | pole = Juan Pablo Montoya | polenation = COL | poleteam = | poletime = 1:13.114 | fastestlap = 1:16.079 | fastestlapdriver = Juan Pablo Montoya | fastestlapnation = COL | fastestlapteam = | fastestlapnumber = 60 | winner = Michael Schumacher | winnernation = GER | winnerteam = | second = Ralf Schumacher | secondteam = | secondnation = GER | third = David Coulthard | thirdteam = | thirdnation = GBR}} The 2002 Brazilian Grand Prix, otherwise officially known as the XXXI Grande Prêmio do Brasil, was the third round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on 31 March 2001.'Brazilian GP, 2002', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr683.html, (Accessed 14/11/2019) The race would see Michael Schumacher claim a dominant victory courtesy of using the latest Bridgestone tyres, outfoxing the rest of the field. However, the German ace would have to fight his way to the head of the field after qualifying, for he was beaten to pole position by Juan Pablo Montoya of . Schumacher duly claimed second ahead of his brother Ralf, while the two and the two s got ahead of Rubens Barrichello in the second . The start of the race would dictate the rest of the afternoon, with Michael Schumacher able to draw alongside Montoya on the run to the first corner. The #1 Ferrari subsequently dived inside the #6 Williams to seize the lead, aided by the fact that Montoya ran wide. Yet, Montoya did not fall too far behind the German ace, and duly got into the slipstream of Schumacher on the run to Descina do Logo, turn four. Unfortunately the Colombian racer would misjudge his braking point and smack into the back of the Ferrari as he tried to dive to the inside of the left-hander, resulting in the Williams losing its front wing. Montoya's plummet down the order would leave Schumacher with a healthy lead at the head of the field, with brother Ralf assuming second place. Behind, Barrichello stormed his way up the order on home turf, taking Kimi Räikkönen, David Coulthard, Jenson Button and Jarno Trulli on successive laps. Indeed, by lap six the Brazilian was also clear of Ralf Schumacher, and charging off to challenge his teammate Michael for the lead. After eight laps the #1 Ferrari moved aside to let the sister car take the lead, prompting huge cheers from the home fans, with Schumacher safe in the knowledge that his Brazilian teammate was on a low fuel load due to opting for a three-stop strategy. Yet, just three laps later Barrichello was out of the race completely after a hydraulic failure, leaving Schumacher at the head of the pack. Behind, Ralf Schumacher ran in a lonely second, while behind it was all-out war between Renault and McLaren, with Räikkönen and Coulthard trying hard to get back ahead of Trulli and Button. As the race wore on many began to question when race leader Schumacher would make his stop, most assuming that his pace was down to being on a two-stop, compared to the Michelin runners' usual one-stop. However, as the laps ticked by it soon became clear that the Ferrari was indeed on a one-stop, ending any hope that the scarlet car could be defeated. Schumacher would only lose the lead for five laps as he made his stop, rejoining in second behind his brother before Ralf made his lone stop on lap 44. With that the race for victory was over, with the Schumacher brothers easing to a familial one-two, with Michael allowing Ralf to close to within a second by the end of the final tour. Behind, the Renault/McLaren fight ended with just one car apiece left healthy at the end of the race, with Coulthard ultimately emerging ahead to complete the podium. Button duly claimed fourth despite some late pressure from his Williams replacement Montoya, while Mika Salo had a quietly satisfying run to sixth for . Background Victory had ensured that Ralf Schumacher leapt up the order in the early Championship table, ending the second weekend of the season in third on ten points. That left him four shy of his Championship leading brother Michael, with the German ace himself two ahead of Ralf's teammate Juan Pablo Montoya. Elsewhere, Kimi Räikkönen slipped to fourth ahead of Eddie Irvine and Jenson Button, with ten drivers on the score sheet. In the Constructors Championship the one-two for had propelled the Anglo-German alliance to the top of the pack, establishing an eight point lead. hence slipped to second on fourteen points, although they still held a significant ten point margin over third placed . Elsewhere, , and were all level on three points, while and completed the early score sheet. Entry list The full entry list for the is outlined below: Practice Overview Qualifying Qualifying Report Qualifying Results The full qualifying results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session. *'Bold' indicates a driver's best/qualifying time. ** Barrichello and Sato had their fastest lap times deleted for ignoring a red light in the pitlane during practice. Grid Race Report Results The full results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car. ** Villeneuve and Räikkönen were both still classified despite retiring as they had completed 90% of the race distance. Milestones * Rubens Barrichello made his 150th Grand Prix start.'3. Brazil 2002', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2002/bresil.aspx, (Accessed 14/11/2019) * 20th Grand Prix starts for Enrique Bernoldi, Juan Pablo Montoya and Kimi Räikkönen.'2002 Brazilian GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2002&gp=Brazilian%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 14/11/2019) * Juan Pablo Montoya recorded the twentieth pole position for a engine. * 55th career victory for Michael Schumacher. ** It was also Schumacher's 100th podium finish. * claimed their 146th win as a constructor and engine supplier. * Ralf Schumacher claimed the 40th podium finish for a BMW engine. Standings Michael Schumacher extended his Championship lead after his second win of the campaign, moving eight clear at the head of the pack. Ralf Schumacher, meanwhile, had moved into second ahead of his teammate Juan Pablo Montoya, with those three the only drivers in double figures. Behind, Jenson Button climbed into fourth ahead of the two , with eleven drivers on the score sheet. In the Constructors Championship had done enough to hold their Championship lead, although their advantage had been cut to six points. hence still loomed large in their mirrors, moving onto 24 points, with McLaren-Mercedes already a distant third, sixteen behind their Italian rivals. Behind, were sat in fourth ahead of and , while remained ahead of . Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown. References Images and Videos: * References: Category:Grand Prix articles Category:Brazilian Grand Prix Category:2002 Grands Prix Category:Grand Prix articles Category:Formula One races in Brazil